Court play 'taken too far’

Press, 10 December 1983, Page 80

Court play 'taken too far’

By

JOHN BROOKS

The Wilding Park grass courts and those who administer them have a champion in Noel Dillon, an Edgeware senior tennis player and a former Canterbury selector.

The controversy over the state of the court surfaces, which has resulted in two players withdrawing from the senior competition, had been taken too far, said Dillon.

“In my own tennis experience, over 20 years, very few people have expressed thanks for the voluntary work done by officials,” he said. “I think a little too much has been thrown at Wilding Park, especially when you consider all the years it has been the best tennis centre in New Zealand.” Dillon said it should be remembered that tennis was administered for all grades, not just seniors, and if the proposal of the cap-

tains to have senior matches switched to the porous courts was approved, the juniors would be disadvantaged. “The surfaces don’t, worry me,” he said. “You’ve got to learn to put up with them. The courts treat everybody equally, and fortunes are fairly well evened out. “Only two senior men out of 32 or more have pulled out; that’s not very many. I think most competitors are taking it in very good humour,” said Dillon. Dillon asked how many weeks or how many defeats it took before a player decided not to continue on the Wilding Park grass. He said did not think clubs would be very impressed by such developments. “I’d like to say a word on behalf of the officials ...

they are not shirking their responsibilities. This problem could have happened to any administration, and we’ve just got to make the best of it.”